Little Falls transcript., 1887-03-18

heap more behind 'en than used to
be; the whole face seemed to sort Of
shine up into good deal moro IN
telligence Of expression, showing that
he was getting knowledge of things in
some way, and laying in steady
stock of it on tap for use.
{ got the right understanding of this
one night as l chanced to pass the
Young Mems Christian Association
where there are frst-class evening
schools argoing all through the week,
and saw Johnny coming out Of the
door. He was SO nicely dressed, and
carried himself so straight up and dig
nifed, hardly knew him. ..
Yes, he said, he was attending every
night and making good headway. as
Fanch had advised and told him he
could do. T.. -. 4:
So here was the cat let out OF the
bag This was how Johnny was going
to prove he was no ''mullet head"
and get even with Bor]ag.
didn't let on about it to the boys
for ever since I found out how good
the poor lad had been to his mother l
couldn't hel p but respect and like him
too we'll to join in the worry against
him.
Smagg and Borlag kept up the game
as hard as ever, though. The first
out Of sheer love OF fun and mischief,
and the foreman on account of the
spite he felt. Whenever pail OF beer
came into the shop-and, by the way,
that was two and three times day.
Borlag would fill up the tin mug and
make u mock pretense of handing to
Johnny, and when it was refused,
throw out the sneering taunt: "See
the miserable puke!"
After q while it was noticed that
Johnny was having a daily newspaper
left at the shop, and he would sit down
in the noon hour and read it while he
eat his dinner. This raised a. great
mocking hue and cry. As it always is
where there are O. lot of ignorant
workmen in shop, the appear ance of
book or paper in the hands of one Of
their number in quest of better intelli-
gence Will rouse their ireful ridicule in
a moment. There was adead set roar
OF coarse satire flung at Johnny on the
| spot.
"Oh, scissors and molasses!" Borlag
yelled the minute he got his eye on the
obnoxious innovation. "See the null
et-head sucker lettin on he can read!
III bet the drinks he don't know he's
got the paper upside down."
Then Snagg screamed FORTH
Him read? He don't know a news
paper from a side OF sole -leather!''
"Don't you fool yourselves, gentle
men," said Fanch, at this point, as
he came forward to the scene OF mock
cry. "Johnny's got q be<ter brain in
his head than any three OF you put TO-
gether."
This brought forth shouts of deris-
ion. when George added
"Wait a bit. Some day he'll open
you fellows eyes in astonishment."
$50 will a wooden stump" Borlag
sneered. "He's sick duck to aston
ish anybody"
Sometime after this I asked Johnny
If he WAS still pegging into his school
studies and how long he expected to
keep it up. With bright glow OF en-
thusiasm on his face he answered.
"Till I can walk away from that
Jig-oan to something q good deal
better. It amt what a man starts
at that counts what he's worth.
It's what he pushes his way up to-"
I thought of this good while after.
wards. may as we'll confess that I'd
no sort OF idea that Johnny had any
thing extra in him. In fact, it aim It
! often that ignorant workmen will &C.
knowledge anything better in g. fellow
than is in themselves. Itdoes seem as
! If there s g. sort OF particular selfishness
in ignorance that can't hear and see
anything brighter or smarter than it's
own stupid wooden-h -headedness.
reckon must had lot of this feeling
in me, for mind that the notion OF
his undertaking to work his way up to
a good education by tending night
school l made mighty little account OF.
That would have been to put him down
as smarter than we were. Besides, I'D
known lots OF chaps set into the same
thing with 81 big squirt. But they soon
tuckered out and give the fool business
up. It was too much after the fag OF a
hard days work. As Borlag said
"Who the blazes wants to fool his
time stuffing book farming into him as
if he's setting up to be a schoolmarm?
What a man wants after a days work
is game of euchre or seven-up, and
two or three mugs OF beer"
So he and the rest kept on swilling
beer and let books and newspapers
alone, while Johnny continued to
stuff his head with knowledge and let
drinking alone. At the end of year
and a half Johnny was a new man.
don't believe his own mother would
have known him. 1t was astonishing
how the schooling he WAS acquiring
frightened up his face. 1t was still
strongly marked enough so, to make
him seem different to most folks.
but that was hardly taken into &C.
count by the side of the new light OF
educated intelligence that shone in ev-
cry feature.
Long before this the boys had stop
ped throwing slurs at him: that is,
all except Borlag. Two things went
to keep up the foreman's vindictive
feeling. First he had tried his best to
have Johnny discharged to make
room for pet of his own, and failed
and New Years, when the yearly
stock taking had been gone into, John
ny to the surprise of all OF as, was
picked out to write the list OF items,
on account OF the beautiful clearness
of his handwriting. This in itself was
gall and wormwood to the foreman,
because heretofore he had always
been selected for that purpose. But
what made it rasp In far more keenly,
the mischief-loving beggar, smagg,
drawled forth in a voice OF mock SYM
pathy:- s~-..-
"Borlag, my son, guess you'll have
to begin tending night school, like
r. ~ 4 .-sis.E =